Five essential Toronto Blue Jays Cards from the 1970s and 1980s
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After a drought of more than 30 years, the Toronto Blue Jays are back in the Fall Classic and hoping to secure their third World Series trophy in as many attempts. Whether Vlad Guerrero, Jr., George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and company will be enough to take down Shohei Ohtani and the suddenly invincible Dodgers is another matter entirely but one that will have the eyes of the United States, Canada, and the world watching.
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While the team's focus is squarely on 2025 with only occasional inspiration drawn from their 1992 and 1993 glory days, it's worth remembering that the Blue Jays are a franchise that truly, in the words of their most famous fan, "Started from the Bottom." In that spirit, then, here is a look back at the Five Essential Blue Jays Cards from Before They Were Good!
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Dodgers vs Blue Jays
— 💮 (@StephUTD) October 21, 2025
Kendrick Lamar vs Drake
the finale pic.twitter.com/O8xuqtiij2
1977 Topps Toronto Blue Jays Team Checklist
No Blue Jays collection from the early days is complete without a 1977 Topps card reflecting the first season of the franchise. As good a candidate as any is the Blue Jays team checklist, which (out of necessity) used a manager/coaches layout rather than the standard team photo approach Topps took with other teams. The mini-pennant on the side that reads "Founded 1976" was also a nod to the newness of the franchise as for all other teams but Seattle that design element was used for the manager's name.
1978 O-Pee-Chee Doug Ault
Though the Blue Jays got off to a predictably bad start in 1977, fans (or at least collectors!) had hope in that three Jays were named to the prestigious Topps All-Star Rookie team. Tops among the trio was first baseman Doug Ault, whose 1978 cardboard also offered the delightful and soon to be poignant bonus of a Thurman Munson cameo. Speaking of bonuses though, why settle for the Topps version when the Canadian O-Pee-Chee version, complete with complimentary French lessons, is available?
1979 Topps Bump Wills (ERR)
Purists may protest that this is not a true Blue Jays card, but really isn't that the point? Plus, anyone who was between the ages of 8-11 at the time this card came out knows just how mind-blowing the Blue Jays Wills was. It wasn't just a card. It was a phenomenon.
1980 Topps Dave Stieb
Before the pennant flags started flying, the franchise's greatest player and perennial ace was right-hander Dave Stieb. Though his name is rarely brought up today, Stieb was not just Toronto's top pitcher of the 1980s but the decade's best pitcher across all of baseball. Dwarfed considerably by the 1980 Topps set's Rickey Henderson rookie card, Stieb's rookie card can be found in VG condition for less than a toonie.
1981 Fleer Danny Ainge
While Ainge didn't accomplish much on the diamond, his 1981 Fleer and Donruss rookie cards may see a nice bump if his impressive career as an NBA executive prove enough to land him in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Of course the Ainge completists will want to reach even farther back for his earliest cardboard.
That the Five Essential Blue Jays cards of the team's earliest years feature only a single star player and only four actual Blue Jays can certainly be taken as a sign of how bad this team used to be. On the other hand, it can equally be seen as a sign of just how far the franchise has come. After all, it's October 2025, we are just days away from the World Series, and—again, in the words of Drake—"now the whole team here!"
Jason A. Schwartz is a collectibles expert whose work can be found regularly at SABR Baseball Cards, Hobby News Daily, and 1939Bruins.com. His collection of Hank Aaron baseball cards and memorabilia is currently on exhibit at the Atlanta History Center, and his collectibles-themed artwork is on display at the Honus Wagner Museum and PNC Park.